Basic switch....should I upgrade?

@audphile1

Here is one example, I own quite a few of their amazing DSD recordings.

@vinylvalet  I don't have Cisco switch, can understand the mix up, one can really go into weeds with streaming and optimizing networks, as we have in this thread.

The problem as I see it, is segregated expertise between dac and streaming component designers. I don't have a problem with dac designers as long as they provide a first class port, be it usb, spdif or network for streaming dacs. I DO have issue with server designers who mostly give us lame, second class outputs. Low processing power, ports connected directly to relatively noisy motherboards with poor clock implementation, no isolated power supply, just what are we paying for! Optimized OS and a fancy case is about it. Sure some of them provide outboard lps, but I'm talking about lps for individual ports.

So, because of these limitations we're forced to get various rendering decrapifiers and conversion schemes, or go to streamers to avoid the decrapifiers. Streamers come in many flavors, one needs to to their due diligence to avoid mismatched components and/or reach full potential of dac/streamer interface.

And then we have the network itself, we still await that magical bullet, the least complex, best universal setup. I suspect, over time, as more attention is paid to audiophile network solutions these innovations will be forthcoming.

Ultimately, it would be nice to see more integration between dac, streaming/server and network designers. More simplified and universal solutions would be good.

@sns I apogize, my mistake. My question should have been directed to @jerrybj (please share your Cisco mods).

Otherwise, thank you for your post. I agree with everything you said. Kind of like the early days of vinyl; we've come a long way. Like you, I am optimistic.

@audphile1  in many ways. Common method would be storage for a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) on a NAS or external file server. More sophisticated use would be recording equipment , mixers, DAW’s etc supporting DANTE which runs over IP/Ethernet.

@scottfraser NAS storage makes sense. As far as recording and mastering…there are so many poorly recorded albums out there that no amount of fixes by the end user/listener in their system can address these issues be it mastered over Ethernet or direct.
Studios, at least some, also use basic cables and mid fi monitors. Then there are recording studios and engineers that are so anal about the quality of the product they put out that they use the best possible gear. What does all this mean to us as end users? In my opinion - absolutely nothing. We’ll pursue getting the best sound we can and that includes fixes and tweaks. 

Now we tend to get carried away in the process and go deep into the woods but still see just a tree or two as opposed to seeing the entire forest. That’s a good point to pump the breaks and reassess…do I continue to add crap in an attempt to make a mediocre component sound better than it possibly can or do I stop and just upgrade that component? Realizing when that is is what will get you to the next level. We’re all guilty of missing that mark…

Didn’t mean to get philosophical here but that’s about how I look at it. You may see it differently.